North Carolina State University Athletics
Amato Holds Pre-Season Press Gathering
6/22/2000 12:00:00 AM | Football
(Photos By Melissa Booker, Total Sports)
N.C. State head football coach Chuck Amato met with the media on June 22 to talk about the 2000 football season. Here is a partial transcript of Amato's thoughts on his first season at the helm of the Wolfpack program.
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On Spring Practice being a starting point for the upcoming season:
"Every phase of it has still got a lot of work to do. They have been working hard in the off-season and summer and they are continuing to lose weight, and a few of them really have redone their bodies. They actually feel good about themselves. Some of the big guys are wearing tank tops. But we still have a big task in front of us.
"I just hope I can meet the expectations. There is a big task in front of us. We're just going to have to continue to work and then go from there."
Did he realize what type of talent N.C. State had when he was an assistant at Florida State?
"When you play against people, sometimes you realize what they have, but you don't know what they don't have. And, I know that what I'm used to doing is that I was more concerned about the people we were coaching than the people we coached against.
"I was shocked at some of the depth at some of the positions. You can't play without a quarterback. It's like playing basketball without a point guard. Here we are going to play with a youngster that just turned 18 two months ago and has been in school for only four months. Is he ready? We'll get him as ready as we can. But he is the best we have, just like all of the others are going to be the best ones that we have. We're pleased with his progress, as we are pleased with the progress of all of them."
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On the support of the N.C. State administration and the fans:
"I took it (the coaching job) because I know it's going to be a challenge - which is such a coaching cliche, but it is going to be a challenge. The people, the administration - they've been so good from day one about a commitment. The fans have us going not to the Orange Bowl, but to the Super Bowl! It's going to take time and it's going to take patience. But we're going to do our darndest to get the max out of our young men and that is all we can ask."
On the importance of his assistants:
"I always said that if I ever had the opportunity to be a head football coach that I would surround myself with experienced coaches. I'm going to make mistakes. My eraser runs out before my pencil does. But I don't want my mistakes to be magnified by inexperience with the assistants. The toughest thing was putting together a staff. It was like a one a week type thing. I replaced nine. I really believe in the chemistry of our coaches, and I don't see any of the egos. Again, I think that is due to maturity and the experience that they have."
On the excitement of his staff:
"We're excited about the season and we're excited about recruiting. We came off the road recruiting and we're excited about going after our first recruiting class because this next recruiting class is going to be my first recruiting class and our first recruiting class."
On freshman quarterback Philip Rivers:
"He is very mature. And, I think a lot of that has do with that he has great football savvy. I think a lot has to do with the fact that he grew up in a family where his father wasn't just his father but his father was a coach. He had been sitting next to him kind of like Mike Shula did for Don Shula taking down plays for all those years."
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On whether he is reluctant to start a true freshman at quarterback:
"It's tough - a true freshman quarterback. But we feel he is up to the task. And, he ended up Spring Practice as the number-one quarterback. And a lot of those reasons were because he absorbed the offense quicker than the others did. We're excited that if we had to have one (a freshman quarterback) that it is him."
"Thank goodness we convinced him to stay with North Carolina State. The only thing that I promised him when I went down to see him the Saturday after I took the job was you gotta trust me that I will get you a man that knows how to coach quarterbacks and we've done that."
On bringing the Florida State winning ways to N.C. State:
"I don't like to push Florida State. But, I use it because why not? The thing about those young men down there that I gotta get these young men up here to believe is that this thing up here (pointing to his head) is what it is all about. If you think you can and you might, then you will, but if there is a doubt, well then you are going to play on egg shells."
"That, I think is our biggest challenge to let these young people believe that they can do it. It is an attitude, a belief and that comes from hard work. It isn't just because they (Florida State) have good players down there. They are good players, but they work their fannies off. They don't want to be the first team to not win 10 games. They don't want to be the first team to not end up in the top four."
"It's an attitude and it's a swagger. Come on out - we're waiting for you on the 50-yard line. When we can get that way, we'll have the swagger."
On the team's improvement since his arrival:
"They have improved and that is the big thing. And, now they see it. They are improving their work ethic. You know the harder you work, the tougher it is to surrender. It drove me nuts that kids would quit in one-on-one drills in the spring. But now I'm encouraged with the way they have worked this summer and we tip our hat to them. We still have a lot to battle. The biggest battle is going to be between their ears because it is an attitude. It is a championship attitude. It makes you feel good about yourself."
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On looking forward to watching Edrick Smith play:
"He's starting to get his confidence back about his running and he has been released by the doctors. He's a little 'puffy' right now, but he's getting himself in shape. I'm excited about seeing how he performs."
On Ray Robinson's Spring Practice:
"He had a real good Spring. I think he is real confident about himself. He's a good student, he's a good person and he'll be a leader for us. And leadership is something we need. Leadership is something that we need to continue to search and find and continue to push. We need to get them to where the rest of the team will know who their leaders are.
On the building of new facilities at N.C. State:
"It's going to happen. I was hoping it would have happened January 7 (the day he was hired). But when you are talking about a $100 million dollar project, it takes time. We have to do it and we will."
On what he expects when the team takes the field in the fall:
"I want them to play harder than they are used to playing, and they already do play hard. But, I want them to play harder. I want them to play with emotion and enthusiasm. I want the people in the stands to feel they got their money's worth. Win or lose or whatever happens, that's something that if you just gave it your best, that's all we can ask."
On the Raleigh area as a recruiting tool:
"Raleigh has changed so much. It's a metropolitan now, if you hit traffic at the wrong time, you are in it. With N.C. State, North Carolina and the Research Triangle, it is a very progressive area which has to be a plus in recruiting. It's a very marketable area. I think the state of North Carolina has in this area and in Charlotte, two of the most progressive areas in the country which is a plus for us."
